How and what to watch for Colorado State vs. Fresno State

The Colorado State Rams will get their 2020 college football season started when they head on the road Thursday night to play the Fresno State Bulldogs.

While the Mountain West opened up its season on Saturday night, Colorado State sat out and watched with its schedule season opener against New Mexico canceled due to a prevalence of coronavirus in the University of New Mexico area. The Rams will begin the Steve Addazio era as he was brought in after being fired at Boston College. Colorado State went 4-8 last season and are looking to get off to a solid start with quarterback Patrick O’Brien, who threw for 2,803 yards with 13 touchdowns and seven interceptions in 2019. Unfortunately, he lost Warren Jackson, who opted out of the season after 1,119 receiving yards and eight touchdowns last year.

Fresno State dropped its first game of the season on Saturday night with a 34-19 home loss to Hawaii. The Bulldogs trailed by four heading into halftime but scored just six second half points. Fresno State quarterback Jake Haener turned the ball over four times with three interceptions and a fumble. He completed 17 of 31 passes for 289 yards and a touchdown. He also rushed for 37 yards on 13 carries. Ronnie Rivers led the team in rushing with 79 yards on 18 carries and a touchdown.

Colorado State won the last three games of this series including 41-31 in Fresno in 2019.

Game Time/TV Channel/Streaming

You can watch Colorado State at Fresno State on Thursday, October 29th at 10:00 p.m. ET on CBS Sports Network, or you can stream it via the CBS Sports app with a cable or streaming service login.

Point Spread, Totals, Odds, Trends

Point spread: Colorado State (1.5) vs Fresno State
Point Total: 59
Money line: Colorado State (-122), Fresno State (+100)

• Colorado State is 6-3 against the spread in its last nine games.
• The point total went under in seven of Colorado State’s last eight games.
• Fresno State is 1-4 against the spread in its last five games.
• The point total went over in six of Fresno State’s last nine games.

The Best Bet

The O/U is your best bet here. Sure, Fresno State didn’t look that great last weekend. But this is the Rams first game of the season. Plus having a new head coach like Colorado State does puts teams at a huge disadvantage this season with limited reps to input a new scheme.

Pick: Under 59

If you or someone you know has a gambling problem, crisis counseling and referral services can be accessed by calling 1-800-GAMBLER (1-800-426-2537) (IL). Gambling problem? Call 1-800-GAMBLER (NJ/WV/PA), 1-800-9-WITH-IT (IN), 1-800-522-4700 (NH/CO) or 1-800-BETS OFF (IA). 21+ (18+ NH). NJ/PA/WV/IN/NH/IA/CO/IL only. Eligibility restrictions apply. See draftkings.com/sportsbook for full terms and conditions.